


Dust And Devils on My Conscience

by mangocianamarch



Series: Le Livre de L'abondance par La Dame Marciana [13]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Explicit Language, F/M, Minor Spoilers, Minor Violence, Potential Spoilers, more tags to be added as needed
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-20
Updated: 2016-09-22
Packaged: 2018-08-16 07:20:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,409
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8093239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mangocianamarch/pseuds/mangocianamarch
Summary: "I know you're worried. I am too. I’m so scared, because we don’t know what Ripley is capable of exactly. I just want Vex back. I want Vex back almost as bad as you do. But we have to be smart about this. We can’t just go tearing around the island and wasting energy and making a lot of noise just to find her, that could make things worse for her. I know it’s hard, but we’re used to making hard calls."It seems Dr Anna Ripley isn't quite finished torturing and experimenting on Percival.





	1. But The Devil Always Won

**Author's Note:**

> I have had this idea for a lonnnnnng time, been wanting to write it out, and episode 67 gave me the final push to actually start writing. I had initially planned this to be a one-shot, but as I was writing it, I realized it would be a bit too long as a one-shot, even considering that there are a lot of details that I can't put into the fic no matter how much I want to (due to lack of canon info about a few things), so now it's a short multi-chaptered thing that I hope you all still enjoy.
> 
> I'm entirely open to feedback, and also any knowledge that you think might help the story in any way, shape or form. Also, constructive criticism is always welcome.
> 
> Title of the fic and its chapters taken from "Chasing Twisters" by Delta Rae, which is included in my "[Perc'ahlia In Love](https://t.co/2yEd6jLMJp)" Spotify playlist.

* * *

 

 

It all happens in a flash, and that fact makes Percy even angrier. One second they are fighting Ripley and her conjured minions, taking what cover they can from her bullets, the next Vex is letting out a victorious yell as an arrow fired from Fenthras finds the side of the good doctor, ripping nearly clean through her flesh. Another shout, Ripley this time, and then a booming puff of smoke, and suddenly they are alone. They all look around, heads popping out from behind rocks or trees, finding each other’s confused gazes and nothing else. And then Ripley’s disembodied voice growls through the air, and Percy winces hard as it grates in his ears.

“You don’t play fair, Percival!” she hisses, “Hiding behind your friends like this. Let’s see how you fare on your own, shall we?”

There’s a faint _pop_ somewhere to Percy’s left, and he turns just in time to see something come to form behind Vex where she’s crouched behind a boulder. Before he can call out to her to watch out, Ripley materializes, grabs her around the waist, and disappears, leaving behind a sinister cackle, but what lingers in the air is the echo of the last syllable of Percy’s name leaving Vex in a cry of surprise.

And then, silence. Deafening, pressing silence as those who are left stand frozen in shock, unsure of what just happened and what to do next.

“Vex!” Vax calls out desperately, and Percy finds himself falling to the ground on shaking knees, Bad News clattering as it slips out of his loosened grasp, “Vex’ahlia! _VEX’AHLIA!_ ”

With a groan and growl of obvious worry, Trinket joins Vax’s panicked search, running around in circles, his low roars growing more desperate with each passing second that Vex doesn’t appear. Grog, still in a Rage, matches the bear’s heavy stomps as he too starts searching, while Scanlan finally finds some time to patch himself up as best he can. Keyleth is following - _chasing_ \- Vax around, but is trying with less and less success to calm him down.

Percy is rooted to the spot, eyes looking ahead without seeing, ears still ringing with Vex’s voice shouting for him. Already aching, wounded and barely able to stay on his feet, Percy feels even weaker now, his arms hanging limply at his sides, his shoulders drooping with the weight of his guilt as his brain tries to process what just happened.

“Where is she?” The heat of Vax’s anger colors his voice, but Percy barely registers any of it - not the hoarse rasp in Vax’s throat, not the quickly shortening gap between him and the half-elf. “Where the fuck is she?!”

“Vax, calm down,” Keyleth says softly, but her plea falls on deaf ears.

Vax’s fists grasp the collar of Percy’s coat tight, and then he gives Percy a violent shake, as if the answer would just fall out of Percy’s pockets. “Percival, where the _fuck_ is my sister?!”

“I...I don’t know…” Percy replies, low and heavy.

“Yes, you fucking _do_ , you arrogant prick,” Vax spits out, “You’re always fucking bragging about how you know fucking _everything_ , so where the bloody hell is that bitch and what has she done with my sister?!”

Keyleth puts a hand on one of Vax’s arms. “Vax, he doesn’t know,” she tries to convince him.

“The hell he doesn’t!” Vax growls, and before anyone can say anything else, Vax rears back with his other arm. His closed fist catches Percy square in the face jaw, and Percy, caught unawares, goes down hard.

“Vax, _stop it_!” Keyleth yelps, trying to push and pull Vax away alternately, “Stop it, this isn’t _helping_! We’re not going to find them if we turn on each other. STOP IT!”

The punch hurts, truly hurts. As Percy gingerly sits himself up with one hand, the other rubs at the side of his face and under his chin. There’s definitely going to be a bruise, at the very least. And isn’t it _so typical_ of Percival’s brain to still wonder about how much of a mark Vax’s punch will leave on him in the middle of such a panic-inducing crisis as this? Percy raises his knees, either elbow propped on them as he shakes his head.

“I’m sorry,” he sighs, “I’m so sorry.”

Keyleth is at his side in an instant, a hand rubbing gently across his shoulder, although he barely feels it. “It’s not your fault, Percy,” she tells him.

“Yes, it bloody is,” Vax interjects through gritted teeth.

“ _No, it isn’t_ ,” Keyleth argues firmly, and Vax clicks his tongue and turns his head away, a fist still clenched at his side, “It’s not your fault. You couldn’t have known what would happen. It happened too fast; even if you were right beside Vex, you may not have been able to stop it.”

“That’s true,” Percy replies, but it sounds weak even in his own ears, “That’s true…”

Keyleth continues rubbing at his shoulder. “Besides, we’re wasting time pointing fingers and blaming ourselves. And Vex wouldn’t want you to blame yourself for this anyway. You know she wouldn’t.”

Percy blinks at Keyleth, who only offers the tiniest of smiles in the corner of her mouth. Percy sighs. She knows. Of _course_ Keyleth knows.

“You know what we can do?” Keyleth continues, looking up at Vax as well this time, “We can scry. I’ve used up some of my stronger spells, but I can use the Scrying Eye to find Ripley and Vex.”

“That’ll tell us where they are, not how to get to them,” Vax points out, “This island is vast as fuck, even if we have a venue or a location, we wouldn’t even know which direction to start walking in to get there.”

“But it’s a start,” Keyleth replies, “I’ll do what I can to get as much information as I can, but we have to start somewhere.”

Something in Keyleth’s words affects Vax, and Percy sees his expression soften, his shoulders sagging. “Right,” he says quietly, “You’re right. Sorry. I’m sorry.”

Keyleth straightens up and returns to Vax, taking his hands into hers. “We’ll find her, okay?” she tells him placatingly, “We’ll find Vex and we’ll get her back. We just gotta keep our heads and figure out a game plan. I know we’re not exactly the best at following through with plans we make, but we’ve gotta pull our shit together. For Vex, yeah?”

Percy watches in silence as Vax sighs heavily, but then nods. “For Vex,” Vax repeats, “For Vex. God, _fuck_. I’m sorry, Keykey.”

“It’s okay,” she tells him, pulling him into a comforting embrace, “It’s fine. Just get it together, okay? We’ll find her.” She turns to Percy. “We’ll find her.”

Percy lets out a heavy breath, then another, and another. He runs a hand through his hair, then nods at Keyleth. He tries to get to his feet, but as he does, a wound in his side protests, and he winces, letting out a grunt through gritted teeth.

“We need to rest,” Keyleth decides, pulling away from Vax, who keeps an arm around her waist even as they both turn their attention first to Percy, then to Scanlan.

“No,” Percy answers, “The sooner we leave to find Vex, the less time Ripley has to do anything to her.”

Keyleth tuts in such an uncanny, if unintentional, impression of Vex that were the circumstances different, Percy would have laughed. “You’re barely standing, Percy,” she points out, “And Scanlan is in shreds. We’re no good to Vex half-dead.”

Percy almost argues that he’s fine, but as he tries to stretch a kink out of his back, the ache in his side flares up again, and he gasps, nearly doubling over at the sudden sharp pain.”

“Exactly,” Keyleth snorts, “Scanlan, can you throw up the mansion?”

“Uh, yeah,” Percy hears Scanlan reply hoarsely from a short distance, “Just...just give me a second.”

Keyleth lets go of Vax and approaches Percy, placing a hand on his side. Immediately, a soothing warmth spreads from where her palm is touching him. He feels some of the pain start to dull and dissipate, but just as he begins to take comfort in the healing magic, he feels it begin to fade. “I’m sorry I can’t do this any stronger,” she tells him, “I need my stronger spells back first.”

“It’ll do,” Percy tells her honestly, “Thank you. What do you need to start scrying for Ripley?”

“I’ve got the Eye,” she answers, “Do you have anything else of hers that we can use?”

A quick recall makes Percy shake his head. “Vex had the last few pages of her journal that I had,” he says, “But I can give you Retort. It could work.”

“It could work,” Keyleth echoes, and Percy carefully places his weapon in her palm, pointing the barrel away from either of them, “Hang tight.”

She walks away, finding a good spot to settle in to start her scrying. Scanlan, with some difficulty, has begun conjuring up their magic mansion. Grog is trying to settle himself back down and out of his Rage, and Trinket sniffs and mewls at him, as if asking him where Vex might be. When that fails to produce any results, Trinket moves on to Vax, nudging at his hand and letting out sounds that Percy supposes are bear whimpers. He seems to be near tears, and the expression Trinket’s face wrings at Percy’s already heavy heart. His memory conjures up a dark tomb, a disturbed sarcophagus, an unexpected explosion. Percy chokes, coughs. _Not again. Not this time. Please not this time._

“Sorry, buddy,” Vax whispers at Trinket, petting his head, “We’ll find your mum, don’t you worry.” Trinket lets out a sad sort of growl in response, bowing his head and plopping down onto his stomach, his snout resting on his front paws. Trinket’s eyes move to Percy, and then the great big bear heaves a great big sigh that Percy finds himself echoing as he walks over to Trinket and Vax.

“Vax,” Percy starts, low and hushed, “Vax, I know you blame me for this --”

“Stop,” interjects Vax, loud enough for only Percy to hear, not even turning to look at Percy, “Just...don’t talk right now. I am upset, I am worried, and I am angry. In general, yes, but also at you. I’m sure my anger at you is misplaced or what the fuck ever, but right now, I need something or someone to blame because it is helping me keep things under control. So yes, I fucking blame you, de Rolo. And I swear, if you don’t find a way to get my sister back, I will _hurt_ you.”

Hurt, not kill. Vax wouldn’t do that, Vax wouldn’t kill Percy. Not because he couldn’t, but because he wouldn’t want Percy to get away with this.

“I would expect nothing less,” Percy replies.

Vax tsks, narrows his eyes, but still doesn’t turn to Percy. “Didn’t I just say don’t talk?”

“ _SHIT!_ ”

Keyleth’s sharp cussing cuts through the air. Both Vax and Percy turn to find her pushing herself up off the floor in a huff, clearly upset. Vax is the first to get to her, and helps her to her feet.

“What is it?” Vax asks, desperate, “Keyleth, what did you see? Did you see Vex?”

“No!” Keyleth answers, aggressively patting at her clothes, “I saw fuck-all! I saw maybe two seconds, and then I got pushed the fuck out! Just like that time on the airship. I think it’s probably the damn cloak or something.” She kicks a small stone, and it bounces away. “Fuck!”

Percy lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding in. “Fuck,” he repeats.

“So are you saying we need to wait for fucking Ripley to take the cloak off?!” Vax asks, “What if she never takes it off?!”

Keyleth shrugs, rubbing at her forehead in frustration. “She might,” she breathes, “I mean, the first time I tried to scry on her on the airship, I got kicked out, but then I tried again and it worked, we saw her underwater. But this is all moot if it’s not even actually the cloak that’s stopping me from seeing her, it could be something else entirely, some other magic thing that she has or can do.” She turns to Percy in an unspoken question.

“There’s not a lot of magic she _can_ do, from what I remember of her,” he confesses, “But it’s been a long time since she was on my radar; we’d nearly forgotten about her in all the ruckus of finding Vestiges and fighting dragons. She could have learned or acquired other things or skills between now and the last time we saw her.”

“That’s not hopeful, Percival,” Vax snorts.

“The truth rarely ever is,” Percy shoots back, “I don’t mean to be a downer, but we’ve proven time and again that we could assume ten things about something or someone and prepare for those, and still be completely wrong because of an unpredicted eleventh possibility that turns out to be the reality of the situation.”

Vax seems to have no counter other than a glare.

“I hate to say it, but Percy’s right,” Keyleth says, “We have to consider that there are a _ton_ of things we don’t know about Ripley now that’s affecting how we’re fighting her. I’ll...I’ll figure something out, but I could use a rest so I can get some spells back. You both look like shit, so _you_ need to rest too.”

“Fuck resting, that’s wasting time!” Vax protests, “Whatever time we spend not getting Vex back is time in which Ripley could be seriously hurting her.”

“I don’t disagree,” Keyleth says evenly, “But at the same time, if you go off wandering aimlessly without a clear destination, there’s a good possibility of you getting lost, and then that would be _both_ of you that we’d have to try and get back. Plus, Percy’s not looking so hot right now, did you not hear when I said he’s no good to anyone like this?”

Vax opens his mouth to say something, but Keyleth shakes her head.

“I know you’re worried,” she tells Vax, “I am too. I’m _so_ scared, because we don’t know what Ripley is capable of exactly. I just want Vex back. I want Vex back almost as bad as you do. But we have to be _smart_ about this, Vax. We can’t just go tearing around the island and wasting energy and making a lot of noise just to find her, that could make things worse for her. I know it’s hard, but we’re used to making hard calls. Vex is a survivor, just like you. And she has faith in all of us. So let’s not let her down, okay?”

There are tears quietly streaming down her face, and now Vax is crying too. Percy blinks away the sting behind his own eyes, and turns away just as Vax circles his arms around Keyleth.  

 _The hard calls_...Were they not just talking about this a day earlier? About how the hard choices never seemed to end up being the right choices, at least to Percy? About how everything they’ve had to choose between in recent months has been hard anyway, and it has all boiled down to which choice will have the least amount of consequences instead of the most number of rewards? Not for the first time, and certainly not for the last either, Percy hates that this is their lot in life. Hates it more now that the choice between one hard thing and another involves deciding Vex’s fate in the next few hours. Hates that if not for him, Ripley would never have known of Vex, would never have needed to harm Vex, would not now be making them all choose between their well-being and Vex’s life.

_I’m sorry, Vex. I’m so sorry._

Percy thinks he says this out loud, but unlike yesterday, there is no Vex to hear him.

* * *

 

 

**~ to be continued. ~**

 

 

 


	2. And I Can Feel You Even Now

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick note to thank you all sooooo much for reading, for leaving Kudos and for taking the time to leave a comment. After having suffered from a writers' block for the better part of two years, it's a relief to have a project that gets me writing again, but more than that, I'm remembering why I love being a fanfic writer. Thank you so much, everybody. Here's hoping you enjoy this new chapter.
> 
> **MILD WARNINGS FOR VAGUE DESCRIPTIONS OF VIOLENCE.**

* * *

 

Usually a workshop is a safe place, somewhere he can retreat to and either gather his wits or distract his thoughts long enough for him to be able to clear his head so he can properly sort out their problem, but right now, it just feels like a prison to Percy. He paces, hands clasped behind him, feeling the silence of his solitude pressing against his chest, and the din of his anxiety and his restlessness gradually getting louder and louder in his head.

So many worries, so many fears, so much to wade through, and Percy can’t isolate a single thing to solve. That makes things worse. He’s a problem-solver, he’s supposed to be able to see what’s wrong and have at least three different ways of making things right. That isn’t happening right now, and it is driving him up the wall. Fifteen minutes of walking around the room to the tune of his blood pounding in his ears in time with the throb of a dull headache has him sighing heavily. He stops, hands on the edge of the work table on which he has laid out all his weapons. He stares at them in turn, scolding them and scolding himself.  _ You were supposed to work. Why didn’t you work? Why weren’t you enough? _

Percy’s eyes fall on Retort, and immediately something in his jaw jumps. His focus homes in on Ripley’s signature on the pearl handle, and Percy can taste blood somewhere in the back of his throat. For the first time since the gun was de-enchanted, he wishes they hadn’t had the magic removed. There is so much he wants to say to her right now, so much vitriol he would love for her to hear, so much punishment and vengeance that he wants to narrate to her before he exacts them on her, even if all he would get in response is a laugh. He wants her to at least hear his rage, even if she couldn’t care less.

Percy reaches for Retort, but his finger brushes against Diplomacy, and he stops. He instead picks up the glove, turns it this way and that in his hand, contemplating the possibilities that have just materialized in his mind’s eye. How deliciously perfect. Ripley would anticipate his guns and his anger, but not this. She wouldn’t expect him to use Diplomacy. She may even have no concept of it.  _ An upper hand, _ Percy thinks wryly to himself, pulling the glove on. He checks the charges, just to ensure that his vengeance will not fail when he needs it the most. He thinks he can hear crackling in the air already, can smell singed flesh and taste heat on the tip of his tongue. Percy lets out a singular, humorless chuckle. He always has had a rather active imagination.

A knock on his door brings him out of his reverie. “I’m coming in, Percival,” comes Vax’s voice.

“You’re welcome to,” replies Percy, but the heavy metal door is already swinging open.

“We need to ta --” Vax starts as he enters the room, keeping some semblance of distance, but stops short, squinting at Percy.

Something in Percy’s chest tightens slightly at the way Vax is looking at him. “What?” he asks, “What’s wrong?”

Vax’s eyebrows nearly meet in the middle. “Percival, you’re  _ smoking  _ again,” he answers, voice hardening mid-sentence.

Percy’s brow furrows. “I’m  _ what _ ?”

Vax points at him with a finger, tracing an abstract outline of him. “Smoking,” he echoes, “The thing. Again.”

Percy checks himself, and only now sees the small tendrils of faint black smoke curling from his sleeves and the hem at the bottom of his coat. “Oh,” he says with a shrug, “I hadn’t realized.” He really hadn’t. He has it under control, most of the time, can bid it come or go with a deliberate thought usually.

“I thought you said Orthax had split,” Vax points out, and the suspicion with which he is regarding Percy now is painfully familiar.

Percy takes a deep breath to try to calm himself, and nods. “It has,” he confirms, “This was a little gift it left behind, as if it had a choice to do so, and as if I had any other choice but to accept it. I  _ can _ control it, usually, you’ve seen me conjure it at will, but I suppose...My emotions aren’t completely in check at the moment.”

“Yeah, no shit,” Vax breathes, “This...isn’t going to be a  _ problem _ , is it?”

There is no threat in his words, but Percy sees it in the subtle way Vax’s eyes sharpen. He can’t help but smile a little.

“I don’t think so,” he tells Vax, reaching up his ungloved hand to rub at a phantom itch at the back of his neck, “But given the circumstances, I can’t promise anything. And if it  _ does  _ become a problem, I know I can trust you to  _ solve it. _ ”

“You wouldn’t even need to ask,” Vax shoots back, a glint in his eye.

The grin on Percy’s face spreads. “Good,” he says with a tiny laugh, “That’s comforting.” He sees Vax shake his head, and he laughs a little more. “Well, you were saying we needed to talk?”

Vax scratches at his eyebrow, starts pacing slowly. “Yes, I was,” he replies, “and yes, we do.” He pulls out one of his daggers and taps the flat side of the blade in some abstract rhythm against his palm.  Vax watches him silently, following him with his eyes. “So, I can only imagine how eager you are to give Ripley a piece of your mind before blowing her brains out and then giving her a piece of her own mind, and I can all but taste your fury in the air around you. I’m pleasantly surprised you’ve stayed here and actually waited.”

“I could say the same of you,” Percy says, waving a hand towards Vax to indicate him.

Vax uses the dagger in his hand to emphasize his next words, pointing the tip like a teacher at a student. “And that brings me to why I’m here,” he tells Percy, fixing him with a fierce look, “If... _ Once _ we find out where that hag has taken my sister, I am going with you. I know she said  _ on your own _ but that is  _ my _ sister.”

Percy sighs, settling back onto the edge of the work table. “I expected as much,” he breathes, “And I’m sure you expect me to argue.”

Vax smirks. “Why do you think I have a dagger out?” he asks in reply, “I’m not going to cut you just to make you agree, but then I don’t expect you to agree at all either. But if I’ve got to destroy things in here to even get you to consider, I won’t hesitate to.”

Percy feels one of his eyebrows climb slowly upwards, then sees Vax mirror the expression. A stand-off, then. Vax starts tapping the blade against his open palm again.

“Do understand, Vax, that if I protest your accompanying me to confront Ripley and rescue your sister,” Percy starts, “it isn’t because I have something to prove to you. I  _ do _ have something to prove to you, but this wouldn’t be what I would choose to accomplish that. But this is  _ my _ fight. This is  _ my _ mess to clean up,  _ my _ poor, unfortunate mongrel to put down. And Ripley  _ knows this _ . I have no idea how much of what we have talked about in recent months she has heard, but she  _ knows _ that I will forever blame myself for her continued existence. She’s challenging me not because she wants to kill me, but because she wants to  _ torment  _ me. Because it is fun for her to experiment on me and figure out how much I can and will take, and then find ways to push past that limit.  _ Because it is fun for her _ . The Briarwoods at least had some sort of end-game goal they were working towards, but not Ripley. Not with  _ this _ , anyway. Grog asked once if I am legitimately afraid of her, and I confirmed that I am, very much so, and this is why. And if you think I’m going to just readily agree to dragging other people into all of this willingly, then you’ve learned nothing of what we had to deal with with the Briarwoods.”

Vax lets out a small huff, and smirks out of the other corner of his mouth. He crosses towards the work table, stabs the tip of the blade onto the wood, and starts spinning the dagger with the handle. “You could be right about all of that,” Vax answers, “But then you were also right about the Briarwoods, and back then, you tried to stop us getting involved too. Remember how well that turned out?”

“Are you asking if I remember how close you and your sister both came to dying at each of their hands?” Percy shoots back, “Because I do remember, Vax. I remember the horror on Vex’s face when we burst in and she saw you lying on the floor, unresponsive and unmoving. I remember the panic in your voice as you yelled at us to get your unconscious sister out of that room where no magic survives. Most of the time, I am convinced I am heartless, but memories like those remind me that I am, in fact, not, because they cause me pain that no healing potion can fix. I do not want a repeat of any of that, especially not because of any choices I may or may not have made.”

Vax sighs and shakes his head. Percy thinks he may be starting to get through to him, but then Vax turns to him, still spinning the dagger like a top on the table. “Speaking of choices,” Vax says, “Here’s a good reason for you to take me along - you let Ripley go once already, because you didn’t  _ have _ a choice. If I go with you, we can minimize the risk of that happening again. You and I together have a better chance of ending this - ending  _ her _ \- once and for all than if you went alone. More heads, more hands, more weapons, all that shit.”

Another light chuckle escapes Percy. “The last time we saw Ripley,” he reminds Vax, “I wasn’t exactly alone either. We just weren’t paying enough attention.”

“Exactly!” Vax replies, “This time, you and I will be more careful and more attentive, because now we know at least some of what to look out for.”

“Careful and attentive?” Percy asks, an eyebrow rising, “Really? Considering it’s you, and considering it’s Vex we’re going after?”

Vax squints at Percy again. “You say that as though I’m the only one in this room who cares for Vex’ahlia,” he says, returning the arch of Percy’s eyebrow.

Percy actually feels a modicum of heat in his ears at that. “Were we not talking about Ripley instead of your sister?” Percy points out.

The look Vax gives him tells Percy that it isn’t a point that he’s going to be dropping anytime soon, even though they’re moving away from it for the time being. “We were,” Vax agrees, “We were talking about finishing her, no matter the circumstances, which would be much easier to follow through on with two of us there.”

Percy sighs, and passes a hand over his face and into his hair. He pulls off his glasses and wipes at the lenses with the edge of his coat as he speaks. “Put succinctly like that, I have no counterpoint,” he admits, “But understand that if you come along, if I  _ let _ you come along, it is with a sense of dread and an uneasy conscience.”

Vax picks up his dagger, flips it in the air, and catches it by the handle. “Then let’s say that I am coming with you whether you  _ let _ me or not,” he proposes with a slight sneer, “Will that make you feel better?”

Percy puts his glasses back on. “Not really,” he tells Vax, “But it makes  _ you  _ feel better, clearly.”

Vax promptly flips him off. As Percy gives him an admittedly smug shrug, the door swings open again, and Keyleth, somewhat out of breath, appears in the doorway.

“Here you are,” pants Keyleth, “Fuck it, I knew should’ve checked here first.”

Vax is at her side in an instant. “Are you alright?” he asks, hands on her shoulders, “What’s happened? Is something wrong?”

Keyleth waves him off, but puts a palm on Vax’s cheek. “No, no,” she reassures him, “I’ve just...I had an idea. And I feel kind of stupid for not having thought of this before.” She turns to Percy to let him know that he’s included in the conversation as well. “Why are we trying to scry on Ripley when we can scry on  _ Vex _ ?”

Vax turns a look of surprised realization at Percy, who is quite sure that he is making the same expression. “Can you do that?” he asks of Keyleth.

“Yes, absolutely,” Keyleth answers, nodding firmly, “It might even be easier to scry on her because we not only know her personally, we actually have some of her things,  _ and _ if she realizes we’re trying to look in on her, she could actually  _ let  _ us, which would make it far easier for me to see.”

Percy feels some sort of tension on him release, and he sees Vax’s face light up. “Well, what are we waiting for?” he asks, “Can you do that right now? Are your spells back?”

Keyleth cocks her head to the side a little. “Some of them,” she replies, “I need her things.”

“I’ll take you to her room,” Vax says with a committal nod. He urges her out the door with a hand on her back. Percy follows, making sure to lock the door of the workshop behind him.

None of them can seem to get to Vex’s room fast enough. They pass by Trinket, who sees their urgent pace and lets out a noise of inquiry. Percy stops only long enough to call him over, and the great big bear pads over, seeming just as restless and desperate for answers as the rest of them. Vax all but kicks Vex’s door open.

Percy has never been in here. He’s been in the doorway of it, but has never really seen much of the inside. He’s unsurprised to find it almost painfully neat and clean, but then he remembers that Vex has not been in here in a while, hasn’t been in the mansion for the past few hours unlike the rest of them, and Percy half-chokes on his next breath. 

Vax seems to have come to the same revelation. “Shit,” Percy hears him hiss, “Shit, shit, shit. I don’t know that she actually kept anything  _ in _ here.”

Trinket calls out to them then, as if on cue, and Percy finds him pawing under one of the tables beside the bed. He gives Trinket a bit of a pet to let him know that he has noticed. Trinket gives him some space to move in, letting out small huffs in Percy’s direction, as if trying to tell Percy something. There on the floor, near Trinket’s paw, is a singular, familiar, bright blue feather.

“Well done, Trinket,” Percy breathes as he bends to pick up the feather, hardly able to believe their luck. It’s been some time since he last thanked any sort of god, but he silently sends gratitude to whichever one may be listening.

“Holy shit,” Keyleth gasps when Percy hands her the feather, “This’ll do, this will fucking do.” She looks around, and then finally settles on Vex’s bed. “You don’t mind if I do it here, do you?” she asks Vax.

Vax shrugs. “It’s not  _ my _ room,” he points out, “Does staying here help?”

Keyleth makes a non-committal grimace. “I don’t really know,” she confesses, “It might? I mean, it kind of helps  _ me _ personally, not necessarily the magic.”

“Whatever you want,” Vax says, “Just find her. Please.”

With a sympathetic look for him, Keyleth nods. She settles in, straightens her back, holds the feather out in an open palm, and closes her eyes. Percy finds himself holding his breath, and has to remind himself to breathe evenly as he waits. He stays where he is, in one corner of Vex’s room, watching Keyleth work her magic. Vax joins her on the bed, stopping himself just short of touching her but keeping close as he watches Keyleth’s face. Trinket moves closer to Percy, seeming to seek someone to empathize with; the bear nudges under Percy’s palm, and he obliges with a few strokes across the animal’s great head.

A few uneventful seconds pass, and then Keyleth’s expression starts to change. Her closed eyes seem to tighten, her eyebrows furrowing erratically until she is full-on frowning. Her lips part and her breathing becomes laboured, until her chest begins to heave with the effort of just inhaling and exhaling. Her head jostles slightly this way and that, and a thin sheen of sweat forms on her skin. Her breathing becomes worse and worse, and then it is racking her entire body, and she pants and begins to slightly choke on too much air.

“Keyleth?!” Vax calls as Percy rushes over, “Keyleth!” He puts his hands on her shoulders and begins to shake her, trying not to hurt her. “Keyleth, come back to us!”

With a final wheezing gasp which ends with a yelp, Keyleth comes out of her scrying, her eyes snapping open. She looks around wide-eyed and panicked, unresponsive at first to Vax calling her name, but then her pupils dilate and refocus on Vax, and her expression changes, but not for the better.

“She’s hurt,” Keyleth chokes out, a tear streaming down her cheek, “Sh-she’s been disarmed and she’s in pain. I think...I think Ripley’s got her locked up or bound or something...Ripley was there, she...Gods, she was  _ laughing _ , and…”

“Is Vex conscious?” It’s Percy who asks, although he figures Vax was half a second away from doing so himself.

Keyleth looks up at him through a wet gaze. “Barely,” she tells him, “I think she’s...holding on, or trying to. I heard something crack, and then she screamed, and…” She wipes at her cheeks, sniffling hard. “She’s hurting her. Ripley’s hurting her.”

Percy feels something grip his heart and lungs tight, far too tight, and now he too is finding it hard to breathe properly. His vision stays sharp, but he can see red in the corners of his sight. Without him knowing it, one hand balls into a fist, and he starts to shake.

“Did you see where they were?” Vax asks, voice hushed and hoarse, “Did anyone say anything that might’ve given that away?”

“Ummm…” Keyleth closes her eyes, as if trying to recall, “I heard Ripley say something about a cave...I heard her say she needed to seal up a ‘second entrance,’ which is...ridiculously convenient for us, you gotta admit.”

“Did she give away some sort of direction or landmark maybe?” Vax inquires of Keyleth.

Keyleth tsks, and seems to rack her brain again for more information. “I heard the word ‘mountains,’” she says, “But I don’t know if she specifically mentioned that the caves are part of the mountains or just near the mountains.”

“That’ll have to do,” Vax says before Keyleth is even finished speaking, “Percival, we’re up.”

“What? No, you’re not,” Keyleth argues, wiping at her cheek with one hand while the other grabs Vax’s wrist to stop him, “You don’t know where you’re going.”

“You said a cave, and you said mountains,” Vax tells her, “That shouldn’t be too hard to find.”

“But you’re not healed up yet,” Keyleth points out.

“We’re healed enough,” Vax corrects, and Percy has to agree. He starts moving towards the door, intending to head back to his workshop to gather his weapons, but he gets only as far as opening the door before it shuts of its own accord. He turns to find Keyleth with an arm outstretched in his direction.

“I’m sorry,” she breathes, alternating her gaze between Vax and Percy, “I know you’re desperate to help her and get her back, but I have to put my foot down. Like I’ve already said, we’re not all healthy yet, which means you’re not ready for whatever Ripley can throw at you. ‘Mountains’ and ‘cave’ is still  _ so _ little to go on, so without proper intelligence on the location, we’d just get fucking lost and waste time. So here’s my proposal - you let me go find the place first, or at least the general vicinity of it, I can polymorph into a bird and fly over and if she’s got look-outs, they’ll be none the wiser. And as soon as I find it, I’ll come right back, and then we go.”

Vax opens his mouth to say something, but Percy cuts him off before he can. “No,” he says firmly, “It will be Vax and I only. We’ve already come to an agreement of sorts, and I’ve already talked about why I don’t want to bring anyone else, and I’m not in the mood to repeat myself, especially because I know you will  _ vehemently  _ oppose me as well. If you are putting your foot down, I shall do the same. So here is  _ my  _ proposal - you go, find the thing, we will wait here and rest as much as we can. Vax and I -  _ only  _ Vax and I - will leave only after you have returned with information, no matter how long or short that might take. Agreed?”

Keyleth looks ready to protest, but Vax squeezes her hand. They exchange a few looks, like an unspoken conversation, and finally, Keyleth sighs, rubbing at her temple. “Fine,” she acquiesces, “Fucking  _ fine _ . But you two  _ better _ stay here until I get back.”

“We will,” Vax assures her, “Promise.”

Keyleth doesn’t look placated at all, but she nods all the same. “Okay,” she says, “Okay. I’m just gonna go grab a couple of things and then I’m gonna go. Okay? I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Vax pulls her into an embrace, and she breathes deep. “Thank you,” Percy hears him say gently, “Thank you.” He pulls away just enough to give her a kiss on her forehead. The smile that puts on Keyleth’s face is small but soft and sincere. It’s adorable, Percy quietly admits, and after everything they have been through, everything they’re  _ still  _ going through, it’s rather nice to see them be able to have moments like this and take comfort in them.

With Trinket at his side, Percy follows Vax and Keyleth to her room, where Keyleth takes a simple health potion to top herself up. She leads Vax to her window, and points at something outside, seeming to give him instructions of some sort. Vax nods wordlessly, and then Keyleth turns her attention to Percy.

“I know what you’re thinking,” she tells him, “And I can tell you over and over again that it’s wrong,  _ you’re _ wrong, but you’re not going to believe me. So let me just say that we’ve got your back, like we always have.”

To anyone else, the look Keyleth is giving him might be patronizing, but Percy knows better. A voice in the back of his head makes him think of how it even reminds him a little of Vex, and her quick compliments and freely given consoling. Percy nods. Keyleth lets out a breath of relief, and reaches around him to embrace him.

“It’ll be okay,” she says, low enough for only him to hear, “She has faith in you. She knows you’re coming for her. She’ll fight as long as she can.”

Percy’s voice catches in his throat. When Keyleth pulls away, she tries to convey her meaning with her eyes. Percy understands, and feels a stinging somewhere in the back of his eyes. Keyleth squeezes his shoulder, before moving on to Trinket. Percy can hear her growling and grunting at him, and hears the bear answer her, but Percy barely registers any of it.

Keyleth motions to Vax one more time before turning into a falcon in a puff of smoke. With a flutter of wings, she’s out the window and gone, and Vax stays and watches the sky for a while. He lets a few minutes pass before he turns away at last, headed for the door. He claps Percy on the shoulder and gives him a single nod before he leaves. Trinket protests, grunting indignantly, and follows him out the door. Percy is left alone with his thoughts, Vex’s message circling around him as if in an attempt to calm his turmoil.

~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~

Her eyelids are heavy, but she makes an effort to open her eyes as much as she can. It takes some time for her sight to adjust and focus, and when it does, she realizes the light outside is dimming, slightly blurring her vision of the outside. She’s somewhat grateful - at least for a while, she doesn’t have to see the freedom she can’t get to. But then she realizes that the sun is going down, and a twinge of panic briefly pierces her thoughts. How much harder would it be to find her in the dark?

She takes a deep breath, then another, and another. It helps to clear her sight some more, and she risks a quick glance around. She sees the fire, she sees the wooden table, she sees the blade and the whip, she sees the small crates, she sees the ropes, she sees the tiny leather pouches, she sees the empty flasks and the vials with her blood in them. She sees nothing else. 

She is alone.  _ At last _ .

Vex sighs in relief, exhausted and in pain. She lets her head fall back gently against the stalagmite she is tied to. She swallows, and her dry throat protests. She tries to focus her attention away from the ache, tries to think of good things, anything to fuel her fight to stay conscious and alive. 

She thinks of Scanlan, whose songs and jokes are always good for conjuring up a quick laugh. 

She thinks of Grog, and the punishment he must be preparing to dole out once he gets his hands on Ripley. 

She thinks of Pike, who she knows is kicking so much arse wherever she is right now, and who wouldn’t want her to give in to her pain. 

She thinks of Keyleth, who continues to impress her and make her believe in the power of morals and magic. 

She thinks of Trinket, who must be so worried for her right now, and who she hopes someone is feeding to help keep him calm.

She thinks of Vax, of watching him take to the sky with his blessed wings to rain anger on the assholes that are keeping them apart, of standing beside him and fighting at his side again, of taking down their foes with him and going off for a drink or two afterwards with him.

She thinks of Percy, of telling him that this was not his fault, of the kindness in him that has created inventive arrows for her that she can’t wait to put through Ripley’s heart, of holding him and thanking him for coming to find her, of the embarrassed smile he’s sure to give her when she does.

Vex thinks of her family, and takes comfort in the knowledge that they are trying to find her, and in the hope that Keyleth was able to give Percy her message.

This is the last uninterrupted thought she has before she sees Ripley join her again in the cave, brandishing something long in her hand.

“Awake?” asks Ripley, stopping at the fire and holding whatever it is she’s holding over it, “Pity. Then again, this would’ve woken you if you weren’t. Might be better this way.”

Vex says nothing, tries not to move as she watches the flames dance across Ripley’s face. But when Ripley straightens up again, inspecting the thing in her hand, Vex feels her resolve slip. Ripley turns to her, starts walking closer.

“This is going to hurt.”

* * *

 

 

**~ to be continued. ~**

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N:** Keyleth's answer on being able to scry on Vex is based on [this info](http://ledamemangociana.tumblr.com/post/150674627646/soleminisanction-ledamemangociana) that someone gave me about how scrying actually works in the game.


End file.
